Orient Express

Mar 30, 2011

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SRAM MTB Hubs

SRAM's mountain hubs are not new, but the line has silently expanded to include 12x135 and 12x142 rear thru-axle and 20x110 and 15x100 front thru-axle compatibility. Good 'ol QR is covered too. The question is…where are the SRAM mountain wheels? SRAM makes mountain hubs, they make road wheels and they own the super-premium Zipp road-wheel brand. So, where are the mountain wheels?

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WTB Volt

From above, the Volt looks just like WTB's popular Rocket V. From the side, however, it's much shorter and has a sleeker profile. Fear not, Rocket V fans: It still incorporates the popular saddle's "Whale Tail" and sloped nose. The Volt will be offered in four levels—the top-o-the-line version weighs 190 grams.

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Syncros Bar End

With flat bars making a comeback—thanks to tall 29er front ends—it's okay for us to use bar-ends again. Syncros's creatively named Bar End has a pronounced inward angle, carbon-friendly clamp and is rubber-covered for extra grip.

Mountain bike icon Joe Murray had this to say about Voodoo's new Zobop: "If I were going to design a bike for myself, this is what it would be." Luckily for Joe, he's is also the Zobop's designer. He wanted a bike with wide-ranging capabilities and great-pedaling suspension. So the Zobop uses a Giant Maestro/DW-Link-looking short dual-link suspension design with 157mm of travel. Head angle is set at 68 degrees, and Joe says the BB is a little higher and the chainstays a little longer than the average trail bike. Frame and shock weigh about 7 pounds and sell for $1,250

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Kind Shock Supernatural

KS showed off a new dropper seatpost that features fixed, direct cable routing, instead of an attachment point that moves as the post is raised and lowered. That eliminates the extra loop of cable that can find its way into the rear tire or suspension linkage. Fixed routing, however, potentially limits the adjustment range of the static portion of the post, though KS did a good job of tightly integrating it into the collar. Fixed routing also opens the doors to internally routed cables. We heard one frame-maker pondering running the cable down the downtube, around the BB and up the seat tube.

The internals on this post are similar to current KS posts, but inverted, while a new head system is lighter and more secure. The remote is the same as current KS posts, but enhanced with a beautiful carbon lever. In other KS news, they now offer up to 150mm of drop in some models.

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Evoc Packs

Germany's Evoc hydration packs are well made, look good and are surprisingly unique in a very crowded field. However, they are not available in the United States. The guys at Rotor Components USA in Colorado Springs sell the excellent Evoc Bike Travel Bag, but so far no one carries the hydration packs. Who's going to be the hero?

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Reset Racing Bottom Bracket

Here's another German product that is not yet available in the States. The Reset Racing Hollowlite bottom bracket weighs just 75 grams thanks to a couple clever tricks. Instead of adding material to the outside of the cups to accommodate a bottom bracket tool, the unique design has the fitting inside the cups, which reduces material (and weight). The outer bearing race also is stripped to the absolute minimum.

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#WINNING!

Charlie Sheen used his newfound free time to launch his new bike brand in Taipei.

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Kali Chakra

Upstart helmet maker Kali showed off its newest model, the Chakra. It comes in $40 or $50 versions—the more expensive version has a bit more in-mold shell as well as a bug net. It's one of the nicest-looking, best-made $40 helmet we've ever seen.

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VP Adjustable Angle Headset

This adjustable angle headset is still in development, but it looks promising. The adjustment is built into the top cup and is somewhat "on the fly." A language barrier prevented us from getting a complete lowdown from VP, but we believe that you loosen two bolts and use the tab to rotate the eccentric piece 180 degrees (the picture above shows the eccentric rotated half way), which yields up to 1.5 degrees of head tube angle change.

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Tioga Zero Pedal

Flat pedals are getting thinner and thinner. The limiting factor, however, is the axle. So, Tioga eliminated the axle in its Zero pedal, which is still in development. Just 7mm at its thickest point, and a mere 4.5 at the thinnest, the Zero is fly-swatter thin. As you can imagine, the trickiest part is the bearing. Instead of having two bearings—one inboard and one outboard of the axle—the Zero uses just one, and doesn't have an axle at all. So every bit of force from a cased landing goes right into that single bearing. Still, Tioga says it's close to perfecting the design and the pedal should be available later this year.

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Kenda Kommando

Evolving out of a cyclocross tire, the Kommando is directional depending on dirt condition: one way for dry and hard; the other for wet and muddy. It's available in 26- and 29-inch versions and uses Kenda's new Sealant Compatible Tire (SCT) casing—Kenda's version of tubeless ready. The tire has a tubeless bead, and can be made airtight with a few scoops of Stan's. For people who still use tubes, SCT tires have little to no weight penalty. Kenda is offering its tubeless ready tires in limited tires and sizes, but will expand the program in the future.

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Mountain Cycle Zen II

It's been a bumpy ride for legendary brand Mountain Cycle, but the company seems to be finding its flow under new owners. The Zen II uses a single-pivot suspension system enhanced by a unique link that modifies shock rate. Dubbed "Turntable," the lower attachment is mounted to a rotating eccentric. Designers say the system allows for a tunable shock rate—in this case a falling initial rate as the shock sags, then slightly rising. According to the company, it's stiffer than similar designs.

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